First Days of College

WIDE, WIDE OPEN!

Teenage days are the time when a person starts to mature physically and emotionally. It is the period of our lives where we think we are the most genius person living in this world. As we grow in maturity, we also encounter adult problems and issues that we learn to deal with. We face hard decisions that sometimes make us want to give up and skip the hard days. But as we grow older, we realize that the bad days we endured were also the best days that we ever had. Why? Because every day teaches us important life lessons.

COLLEGE AND THE REALITY OF LIFE

College. It is the scenario of our lives when we ask ourselves, “Can I really make it?” It is where doubts and personal issues start to build up.

Stepping inside the gates of a university is horrifying for some freshmen, especially introverts or those who are afraid of crowded places. Life seems so serious when you enter the college time zone. It feels like you are in a new world with too many different people. You witness the differences of maturity that you have compared to your colleagues. As my father told me, you will meet different types of people in college and slowly figure out how to deal with them.

When I entered college, I remembered myself as a little boy shocked by the volume of people passing by me. I didn’t have my mother who would cook my lunch and remind me of what I should do. I never thought that it would be so different from high school. When I looked around, all I could see were buildings and students from different courses. I expected them to be unfriendly because all the professors looked so serious. I tried to avoid staring at them just to escape from awkward moments, so I kept my eyes on the ground, praying to God and wishing I could go back home. But on the flip side of my heart, I told myself that I could survive this day and hoped to find a friend to talk to.

What makes college hard? It is not about the course that you choose, but it is about finding the purpose of living and doing it consistently.

Once again, I let my eyes roam around the college campus to find the designated room for my first subject. When I finally found my place and sat down, I took my earphones and played music on max volume to calm myself down. When I looked inside my backpack, I saw a book. It was thick, heavy, old, and a book that a typical college student probably wouldn’t keep inside their bag. People would laugh at me if they saw that ancient book inside my bag. They would probably ask why I brought such a thing on the first day of my college life. I brought a Bible with me.

Before, I was a high school boy who didn’t have any idea what life had in store for me. Then all of a sudden, I woke up and was shocked that I was in college already. At times, the fear of stepping into the next phase of my life consumed me. I wanted to back out and go home, but God was there.

AN OPEN DOOR TO FINDING PURPOSE

For nearly two months of my freshman experience, I always brought my Bible with me. Then I realized I needed to step up and socialize with my classmates. When I started to talk to them, it felt like another door was open. It was a wide-open door. Hearing personal stories from them touched my heart, and I slowly understood the purpose of why God gave me life.

College was a hard transition from being a high school boy who wanted to enjoy life to a college man who found his purpose in life. I discovered that God made me be an ear in a world full of the deaf. God is a good listener. He listens to our rants and provides the comfort that we need. When words cannot describe our emotions, He already hears those unsaid words and gives us a tight embrace.

What makes college hard? It is not about the course you choose, but it is about finding the purpose of living and doing it consistently. Oftentimes, unfortunate scenarios will test you and make you think life is too hard. Try to find that purpose in your life with God and be consistent with it. It will not be an easy road for any of us. College is just the beginning of our journey. We still have a long way to run towards success, but true success comes from God alone, who gave us life.